The Bozeman Strangler
by Lily Michelle
Summary: A young woman arrives at the NYC Crime Lab and Lindsay Monroe's secret can no longer be hidden. DL FlackOC some SMACked
1. Prologue

**Title**: The Bozeman Strangler  
**Rating**: PG-13 for possible violence  
**Pairings**: Danny/Lindsay, Flack/OC, possible SMACked hints  
**Disclaimer**: Don't own them, won't own them.  
**Author's Note**: This is my first attempt at a CSI:NY fic. Not sure how it'll turn out, but thought I'd give it a go. Very short prologue.

Prologue

_BOZEMAN STRANGLER STRIKES AGAIN_

_After five years of safety, fear has returned to Bozeman, Montana. Yesterday, the body of Samantha Roberts was found in her apartment beaten, raped and strangled. The scene fit the descriptions of a series of three rape-murders from five years ago, which were dubbed the Bozeman Stranglings. Residents of Bozeman and the surrounding areas are warned to be on the look out for suspicious characters. They are also advised to lock their doors and not to go out alone at night. There are currently no suspects and no physical descriptions. Anyone with information is asked to call the Bozeman police station tip line at 555-8743._


	2. Chapter One

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter One

The doors of the New York City Crime Lab opened slowly and a young woman walked in, seeming apprehensive. She looked around the lobby quickly before heading to the reception desk.

"May I help you?" the receptionist asked.

"I'm looking for Detective Lindsay Monroe."

The receptionist typed a few things on her computer before answering. "Detective Monroe is up in the lab at the moment. Would you like me to page her?"

"That's alright," the young woman said. "I'll just go up. Could you tell me what floor she's on?"

"She's on the second floor. Elevators are just around the corner. You should be able to find her. The walls are made of glass, after all."

With a smile and a short thank you, the young woman walked towards the elevators.

* * *

Danny Messer was having a pretty lousy day. First, he'd slept through his alarm and woke up with just enough time to get to work. That meant he had only had enough time to have the quickest shower in the history of hygiene and get dressed before running out the door. He hadn't even had time to grab a coffee. That on its own would have been enough to call it a bad day.

However, his troubles weren't over there. When he got to work, his usual 'Hiya, Montana' was greeted with a scowl and a scolding. To make up for it, he'd been forced, by Lindsay, to process the garbage from their scene. Two hours of sifting through half rotten food, crumpled newspapers and used condoms had produced nothing relevant to their DB. Following that, all the prints they had collected from the scene came back to the vic and her boyfriend, who happened to have a valid alibi. They still had no suspects.

Danny was not about to give up, though. After all, Messers weren't the type to just roll over and let somebody else win. So, despite his lousy day, Danny was in the lab making nice with Lindsay and helping her piece together the broken glass coffee table from the vic's apartment. With any luck, they'd find some trace or a print on it that could lead them to the perp.

They'd only got about a third of the way through when Stella knocked on the open door of the lab.

"Hey, Lindsay, I think I found something of yours," she said, pointing to the brown haired woman beside her.

Lindsay gasped, "Sarah? What are you doing here?"

Danny was shocked when the young woman, Sarah, ran to Lindsay and threw her arms around her before bursting into tears.

"Oh, Lindsay," she sobbed. "He's back."

Stella motioned for Danny to come with her, and they both left the room.

"What was that about?" Danny asked, once they'd gone around the corner.

Stella shrugged. "I don't know what she was crying about, but Sarah is Lindsay's sister."

Danny frowned. "Montana's got a sister?"

"And a brother, but I don't know why her sister would have flown all the way out here from Montana. It must be pretty important."

"Hope no one died," Danny said.

Danny Messer had never claimed to be psychic, but this wasn't the moment he'd have picked to be right.


	3. Chapter Two

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

_Author's Note: To those who expressed concern over the receptionist just allowing Sarah access to the lab, rest assured. I'm sure the real NYPD Crime Lab is not as lax. Let's just suspend our disbelief, since I don't know the exact procedure for entering a Crime Lab. She looks enough like Lindsay that they'd have to be sisters. Maybe that got her in. Cheers._

Chapter Two

Lindsay held Sarah tightly in silence until the sobbing stopped. Once she was under control, Sarah pulled back and looked at her sister with a mixture of relief and terror.

"He's back," she repeated. "And he got Sam."

Lindsay's eyes widened. "You mean…"

Sarah nodded. "He's tightening the circle around me first this time."

Lindsay dropped her arms and frowned. Sarah recognized the change. This was business-Lindsay, cop-Lindsay. "I won't let him. This time we'll catch him."

Sarah wished this was true, but as much as she trusted in her sister's abilities, she just couldn't be sure. "Last time…"

"Last time, I didn't have all of NYPD behind me. Last time, it was just me and Kelly. This time it'll be different."

Sarah nodded, and caught a glimpse of movement from the corner of her eye. She'd forgotten that the walls were glass. She'd acted as if no one could see her, but of course anyone could; anyone, including a serious looking man with concern in his eyes. Lindsay took her arm and led her outside to meet him.

"Mac, this is my sister Sarah," she said. "Sarah, this is Detective Mac Taylor. He's my boss."

"Nice to meet you," Sarah said, holding out a hand.

"Likewise," Mac replied, shaking her hand firmly.

"Do you have a minute, Mac? There's something Sarah and I would like to speak with you about."

Mac nodded. "Sure, Lindsay. Why don't you both come to my office? We can talk there."

Sarah followed the two CSIs down the hallways to Mac's office. _More glass,_ she thought. _What's a girl got to do to get some privacy?_

Mac led them inside and gestured for them to sit down. "What's this all about?"

Lindsay began to speak when there was a knock on the door. Flack and Danny stood on the other side of it, but hesitated to come in. Mac looked at Lindsay, who gave a small nod, before he waved them in.

"What's up, guys?" Mac asked.

"We've got a DB about twenty blocks from here," Flack answered, clearly not noticing Sarah. "Raped and strangled in her own apartment. The vic's a Rebecca Saunders, 26. She's a school teacher from Idaho, moved here last year. Danny said he could come with but I'm gonna need two of you."

"Becca?" Sarah whispered.

Lindsay looked at her, quickly. "You know her?"


	4. Chapter Three

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Three

Flack was startled by the unknown voice. He honestly hadn't noticed anyone with Mac except Lindsay. But there was in fact another girl with light brown hair and green eyes sitting in the other chair.

She didn't answer the question for a few moments. It looked to Flack as though she were trying to stop herself from bursting into tears. Eventually, she took a deep breath and spoke.

"Becca was my roommate at teacher's college. She came here to teach last year."

All of a sudden, her eyes widened with fear. "Oh God, Linds. He's here. He's in New York."

"He can't be…" Lindsay whispered.

"Who are we talking about?" Danny asked.

Neither girl heard him. Flack could tell the other girl was too terrified to speak. He'd seen the look on many people since he joined the force. Lindsay looked scared too, but also disbelieving. If he knew Monroe, approaching it in a professional manner would snap her out of it or at least get him a response.

"Does this M.O. sound familiar to you, Monroe?" he asked, in his police questioning voice.

Lindsay looked up at him, and nodded. "Yeah, it does. I was just about to tell Mac, but you two can stay since you're here and on the case."

She turned to Mac while Danny and Flack got settled leaning against the wall.

"It's about the case in my personnel file, Mac."

Mac nodded. "I remember the one, but it didn't have many details."

Lindsay folded her hands and looked at the desk, instead of Mac. "Back home, in Bozeman, there was a rape-murder that I was working on with one of the homicide detectives. The girl was found in her bedroom tied to the bed, raped and strangled. I really shouldn't have handled the case, but it was a small town and everyone knew everyone. The vic was Amanda Cook. I grew up with her, and she lived next door until she moved out of her parents' place.

"About three days later, another body was found. Same M.O. as Amanda. This time it was Rachel Dunlop. She was my lab partner in college. We both moved back to Bozeman after. She had to take care of her father. We didn't even see the connection between them until the third body showed up.

"When we found my partner, Kelly Gleeson, the homicide detective, raped and murdered in her home, the pattern was clear. The un-sub was coming after me. When we drew the cases on a map, they made a spiral towards my apartment. My boss took me right off the case. I went out to visit relatives in Texas for a while and the murders stopped.

"There's been nothing for five years. Until my sister Sarah, here, came today and told me about how they found her best friend Samantha Greene killed in the same way. And now Rebecca's dead too."

Flack looked around the room in the silence that followed Lindsay's story. The other girl, Sarah, looked pale and frightened out of her mind. Lindsay was pale too, but with a blank numbness, like she couldn't quite process the facts. Mac had his serious concentration look mixed with concern.

It was Danny's face that surprised Flack. He was looking at Lindsay as if she would disappear at any moment and he'd be helpless about it. His clenched fists and tense muscles were the only signs of the anger Flack had expected.

"So," Mac started, "you're thinking that if the un-sub has struck again, he's probably after one or both of you."

Lindsay nodded without looking up. "There's no other reason that he'd come all the way to New York from Montana."

"I thought we were safe from the Bozeman Strangler," Sarah said softly. If it hadn't been dead quiet in the room, Flack would never have heard her.

"Me too," Lindsay said, reaching out to take her sister's hand.

"Then damn it, we'll keep you safe," Danny growled.

Every head in the office turned to him. Flack was not expecting him to say anything. Quiet rage and vigilante justice were Danny's normal reactions. _Though, he **is** Italian, so I probably shouldn't be surprised_, he thought.

"How are we going to do that, Danny?" Lindsay asked. "It's not like we had any leads back in Bozeman."

"Well, if you're never alone, he can't get you," Danny said in a very matter of fact way.

_Where is he going with this,_ Flack wondered.

"I can't be with someone all the time. And besides, he killed the others in their own homes."

"Then don't stay at home."

Flack was watching as if it were a tennis match turning from one to the other as they argued. Lindsay was getting annoyed, which was almost a good thing since it wasn't that emotionless numbness from before.

"Where am I supposed to stay, Danny?" She was almost yelling by now.

"There's an extra room at my place. You could stay there. And Flack has a room for your sister. That way you'd have constant police protection."

Lindsay looked inches away from slugging Danny and Flack wasn't averse to seeing him get slugged. _Where does he get off including me in this crazy plan?_ he thought. _Not that I would mind keeping her safe, but still a guy likes to be asked before lending out his apartment._

Lindsay had just opened her mouth, probably to rip Danny a new one, when Mac interrupted.

"That's an excellent idea. We'll put uniformed officers at the doors of the buildings and keep an extra eye on the security footage. Both your buildings have cameras, right?"

Flack and Danny nodded.

"Then, it's a plan," Mac said. "Unless, you can't house Miss Monroe, Flack."

Flack flushed a little in surprise. He hadn't expected to be consulted after Danny had offered his place.

"N-no, it's perfectly alright. She can stay with me," he stammered.

Mac nodded. "Well then, now that this is settled, I want Danny and Lindsay to go over Bozeman records and see if anyone has come to New York since the last murder in Montana. Stella and Hawkes can handle processing the scene. I'll head over to the precinct and work out everything for having officers at your buildings."

"I can go over the records myself, Mac," Lindsay started.

"No, Lindsay," Mac said, "You can't. It's conflict of interest. Danny's going to go over the records. You're going to tell him if you know anyone on the list and how you know them."

Flack stood awkwardly by the door as Lindsay stormed out, with Danny following.

"Uh, Mac," Flack said, "Should I head over to the scene with Stella and Hawkes?"

Mac shook his head. "I'll get another Detective to go with them when I get to the precinct. I need you to take Miss Monroe here to your place and get her settled in."

As he passed Flack at the door, he whispered, "She looks like she could use some sleep. She's had a hard day."

Flack nodded and a moment later he found himself alone with a girl who didn't even know his name. And she was supposed to live with him.

_Well, at least I can fix the name part._

He walked over to the girl and held out his hand.

"Hey."

She smiled slightly and shook his hand. "Hi, my name's Sarah Monroe. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Detective Don Flack, Jr. and the pleasure's all mine."


	5. Chapter Four

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Four

Lindsay stormed through the halls of the crime lab and she was mad. Actually, she was pissed. What's more, she was pissed at Danny Messer.

_Who does he think he is? He can't just make decisions for me and my sister. He's got some nerve._

Now, normally, Danny's nerve was a source of pride and concern for Lindsay. Whenever he did some gutsy thing to catch a perp, she was usually proud of him and worried that he could have hurt himself. Today, she was just plain furious.

_How could he think I'd just sit back and agree? Who does he think I am? Some ditsy blond like the girls he dates? I can take care of myself and my sister. I don't need him._

"Montana? Are you going to stay mad at me?"

Lindsay spun so quickly that Danny, who was following her down the halls, almost ran into her.

"Yes, I _am_," she hissed. "You have no right to make decisions for me or my sister and I'm going to stay mad until I see fit to forgive you. I wouldn't hold my breath, if I were you."

She turned around and continued stomping to their shared office. Behind her, Danny sighed and followed.

"Look, Montana. I was just trying to help."

"I've had just about enough out of you, Messer. Just be very quite for the rest of the day, alright."

Lindsay dropped into her chair, and Danny mumbled something that might have been 'yeah, sure', but she couldn't quite hear him. _At least, he's taking my advice to heart._

He sat at his desk and picked up the phone.

"Hey, Mac. It's Danny. Is there any way I could get copies of the Bozeman case files?"

Lindsay looked at him, glaring, but he just avoided her and listened to Mac's reply.

"I'm going to cross-reference any names we find with them."

Another pause and Lindsay cursed at his continuing ability to ignore her.

"Yeah, I know, but there might be someone she can't remember in the files. Besides, I want to get familiar with the cases and the un-sub."

Danny thanked Mac and finished the call.

"What was that about?" Lindsay snapped.

He just shrugged. "Mac's getting me copies of the case files. They'll be here in an hour."

She scowled again. _He doesn't think I'll remember all the names, does he?_

"I remember everything about those cases, Danny. We don't need to cross-reference."

He nodded. His unusual patience and calm were really getting on her nerves.

"I know that. I just thought that I could go through the files, while you look at the travel records."

She raised an eyebrow. "I'm not supposed to be going through the travel records. Conflict of interest, remember?"

He sighed and looked pointedly at her. "Look, I know how it feels when you can't help on a case like this. I trust you, Montana. You don't need me to baby-sit you, so I'll go through the case files and we'll kill two birds with one stone, okay?"

She was glad to see the impatient, impulsive Danny shine through a little. At least she could still annoy him. But some of his words stuck in her mind.

_I trust you._

For some reason, those words mattered to her. Her anger faded a little bit, though she didn't show it. _Danny still deserves to be put through the ringer._

----------

They worked in silence for the rest of the morning. She looked over plane, train and bus records going back three days, since the last Bozeman murder happened four days before. Danny went through the case files diligently, memorizing the M.O., neighbour's accounts, and everything else he could about the un-sub. Occasionally, he'd ask Lindsay a question, but for the most part they were silent.

They were just finishing up before lunch when Lindsay's cell rang. She was over at the printer and the cell was on the desk, closer to Danny.

"Could you put it on speaker, Danny? It's probably Mac."

Danny hit the speaker button and Lindsay said, "Detective Monroe speaking."

"Where is she?" a high pitched voice yelled.

"Mum?" Lindsay asked. She was shocked. Her mother hadn't spoken to her since she'd left Montana. She hadn't even realized that her mother had her cell number.

"Yes!" her mother yelled. "Now, where is she?"

"Who? Sarah?"

"Of course, I mean Sarah. What have you done with my daughter?"

Now Lindsay was getting angry, which usually happened when she and her mother spoke.

"I didn't do anything to Sarah, _mother_. She showed up here at work today. She wanted to warn me about Sam."

"Do you want to get her killed? Like you got Kelly killed? Send her home now!"

That hurt. Just thinking about Kelly hurt, but having her guilt thrown at her by her own mother hurt more. _This is why I left Montana in the first place._

Danny stood abruptly.

"Mrs. Monroe, I'd just like to inform you that you are on speakerphone right now and I don't appreciate how you're talking to my partner."

"Who is this?" Lindsay's mother asked.

"My name is Detective Danny Messer, ma'am. I work at the crime lab with Lindsay. She's my partner."

"Well," Mrs. Monroe said, sounding very affronted, "I don't know who you think you are, but –"

"No, Mrs. Monroe," Danny interrupted. "You're the one who's been out of line. Lindsay never got anyone killed. I resent that accusation. I've been going over every case file all morning. Lindsay didn't do a thing wrong. She followed protocol to the letter."

"That man was after her," Mrs. Monroe said, "and so it's her fault that Kelly's dead."

"It's not," Danny insisted. "Lindsay didn't ask for a serial killer to come after her. She didn't want this to happen. Detective Gleeson knew what she was getting into when she joined the force. All officers know there's a chance they'll die in the line of duty. It's a chance that we all take."

"Kelly wasn't killed as an officer. She was –"

Danny interrupted again, "She was killed by the criminal of several open cases she was investigating. That counts as the line of duty, Mrs. Monroe. It's not Lindsay's fault. She's not the only one to ever be targeted, you know."

"I'm sure _you've_ never got your brother's fiancé killed."

"No. But that's because my brother is in a coma. A coma that he got because of bad choices I made in the past and a gang leader trying to take me down. So, I know how Lindsay feels and I know it's not any more her fault than Louie's coma is my fault."

There was a pause and Lindsay could tell that her mother had no idea how do deal with Danny. _Must run in the family,_ she thought.

"You still haven't told me where Sarah is."

_Ah the old change of subject._ She was ready to answer, but Danny jumped in before she could speak.

"Sarah is currently under the protection of the NYPD. She is settling her accommodations with an officer for her stay in the city."

Lindsay recognized Mac's language in Danny's answer. Professionalism should always be learnt from the best.

"She'll be staying with Detective Flack for however long she chooses to stay in New York," Danny continued. "I will tell her to call you and inform her of your wish for her to return to Montana. Is there anything else you needed?"

"No, but she –"

"If there's nothing else, then I'm afraid Lindsay and I have to get back to work on catching this guy. Have a good day, Mrs. Monroe."

Lindsay could hear her mother start to speak, but to her shock, Danny hung up the phone.

"Did you just hang up on my mother?" she asked, hardly believing her eyes.

"Yeah. I didn't like how she was talking about you. It wasn't your fault. You're not mad, are you?"

"Not about that," she said. She'd forgiven him for earlier the minute he'd stood up to her mother for her and everything he'd said since then just made her grateful. However, she didn't want him to know that.

"Still haven't forgiven me for Mac's office, huh?"

She grinned crookedly at him. She couldn't resist the puppy dog eyes he was giving her.

"You're closer, Messer. Keep trying and we'll see."


	6. Chapter Five

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Five

Sarah looked at the man before her. His eyes were a bright, clear blue and his smile was warm and disarming. He even sounded like it honestly was a pleasure to meet her. Despite the harrowing events of the past few days, she felt safer.

"Well," he said, "I guess you'll want to see my place, since you'll be staying there for the next little while."

Sarah nodded, but said nothing. His awkwardness was sweet and endearing.

"Right, well, let's go then. Do you have any bags?"

Sarah smiled. "Just this one," she said, pointing to her small duffle next to the chair.

He picked it up for her and then held the door open for her. _I had no idea chivalry like this still existed. And in New York, of all places. _

They walked through the halls of the crime lab in silence. He led her to his car and opened that door as well. They were pulling out into the street when she remembered something.

"Should I have told Lindsay I was leaving?" she asked him.

He shook his head. "Mac'll tell her. Don't worry about it. You can call her later, and invite her over if you'd like. She'll probably stay mad at Danny until tomorrow, at least."

"Thanks, Don."

She noticed him tense when she said his name and quickly asked, "You don't mind if I call you Don, do you? I don't like using last names. You can call me Sarah."

"It's alright," he said, relaxing again. "It's just that hardly anybody calls me Don."

"Not even your girlfriends?"

Don laughed. "I haven't had many serious girlfriends. Usually I introduce myself as Flack, so they keep calling me that. Most of my first girlfriends were from my neighbourhood and everyone there calls me Junior, to avoid confusing me with my dad. I did have this one girlfriend who called me Donald, but that's it."

Sarah laughed a little, feeling a bit strange after all the crying she'd done that day. "You don't look like a Donald to me, so I'll just call you Don."

He grinned at her. "No problem."

When they pulled up to his building, he continued opening all the doors for her, which still made her smile a little. His apartment wasn't huge, but it had two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a large room which served as a kitchen and a living room. He gave her the five cent tour and showed her the room she would stay in.

"I don't have a lot in the fridge right now, so how 'bout I order a pizza for lunch and you can unpack your stuff?"

"Pizza sounds fine, but I can't stand onions or anchovies, okay?"

"No onions or anchovies. Got it. Pepperoni, extra cheese and mushroom sound good?"

"Sounds great. I'm starved. I couldn't eat on the plane. I was too nervous."

She didn't bother to clarify that airplanes didn't scare her in the least, or that she had been nervous about the killer. She hoped he would just assume she was afraid of flying and let it go.

"I can't stand flying either," he said. After a moment of standing there, looking awkward, he coughed and said, "I'll just be in the other room. Call if you need anything."

Sarah nodded and he left the room. She unpacked quickly, not having brought a lot of things, and joined him in the living room.

"Pizza'll be here in about 10 minutes," Don said. "Can I get you a drink? Beer or soda?"

"Soda would be good. I'm not much of a beer drinker."

They sat on the sofa in awkward silence.

"So," he began, "what kind of job do you have that lets you up and leave at a moment's notice?"

"Last year, I taught grade five and six in Bozeman. School's out now and the teacher I was replacing will be back in September, so I don't have a job at the moment."

"Right, you did say you went to teacher's college, didn't you?"

Sarah nodded, trying not to think about Becca.

"Have you been teaching long?" he asked.

Sarah looked up at him gratefully. If they just kept talking, maybe she wouldn't have to think about Sam or Becca. "This was my first year. I'm only twenty-six. I went to college for an English degree before going to teacher's college. How long have you been a cop? You can't be that much older than me."

Flack shrugged. "I'm twenty-eight, but it feels like I've been a cop forever. Probably because my family has been full of cops going all the way back to when the Flacks came to the States. I've always known I was going to be a cop."

"Did you ever want to be something else?" she asked.

"Funnily enough, no. I could never think of anything else I'd rather do. Besides, I can't think of a better job description that to serve and protect."

Sarah smiled. "That's a very noble way of thinking about it. A lot of people wouldn't look at it that way."

"It's kind of what you do, isn't it?" he pointed out. "You serve and protect kids by giving them an education and guiding them and stuff."

Sarah chuckled despite herself. "You're awfully philosophical. But I guess that is what I do."

"Well, we know about each other jobs and you know a little bit about my family, so it's only fair that I ask you about yours."

"Why don't we go question for question? You ask one, then I ask one, and so on."

"Sounds good to me," he said grinning.

They kept talking until the pizza got there and all through eating it. They sat on the sofa afterwards and he explained the football game that was on television. She let him, even though she knew the rules already. She didn't like football that much, but he got pretty into the game, and she thought it was cute. Sarah was so comfortable with Don that she fell asleep on his shoulder before the first half was over.

-------

_She was lying in bed face up and spread eagled. She had no idea how she got there or even where she was. Her arms and legs were tied to the bed posts and she was scared. _

_Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement. Lindsay was tied to a chair in the corner of the room, struggling to get free. She looked terrified, and Sarah was sure the sentiment was echoed in her own eyes. Lindsay tried to say something, but it was muffled by the cloth tied around her mouth._

_Suddenly, there was more movement at the foot of the bed. A man stood at the foot of the bed with a menacing grin on his face. She couldn't make out who it was or any other features besides the grin._

"_Well, Sarah, it's your turn now," he said, in a low and threatening voice. "Your sister is going to watch and then it will be her turn. Then, I'll send you both to meet your other little friends. You remember Becca, don't you?"_

_Sarah knew she was going to die, but not before he had his way with her. She closed her eyes as he climbed onto the bed._

"_Help me. Someone help me. Please," she mumbled. "Stop please stop please help me help me helpmestoppleasehelphelphelpsomeonepleasepleasepleaseplease."_

-----

"Sarah!"

She woke up to someone shaking her and calling her name. For a moment, she couldn't remember where she was and the terror from the dream returned. Then, she saw Don's bright blue eyes and she calmed. She was in his living room on his sofa and if Don was there, the killer couldn't be.

"Don," she whispered.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice full of concern.

She nodded slowly. "Just a bad dream."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I'd rather not, if it's all the same to you."

He nodded and helped her sit up on the sofa. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

They sat for a moment in silence; Sarah trying to compose herself and Don offering silent support. After a minute, he sat back and said, "I find that a shower helps get rid of bad dreams, and you probably still feel gross from traveling. Why don't you go wash up while I call Danny and Lindsay to see if they want to go for dinner later?"

She nodded. "Thanks, Don."

He grinned slightly, "No problem. You probably didn't bring a lot either, with only one bag. We could go pick up anything you need after your shower if you'd like?"

"Are you offering to go shopping with me?" she asked, with amusement.

"Yeah," he paused and narrowed his eyes. "I'm going to regret this, aren't I?"

"Probably, I've never been to New York before and I like shopping much more than my sister."

Don groaned. "Oh well, I'll live. After all, I already offered."

"Yes, you did," she said. "Just give me fifteen minutes and I'll be ready."

"That fast, huh? Most girls I know need at least half an hour to get ready."

"Most girls aren't me, Don. You'd do well to remember that," she called over her shoulder as she left the room.

_Funny, I feel better already and I haven't even had my shower yet._

-----

Author's Note: Yes, this chapter is mostly just fluff with no plot development, but I wanted Sarah and Don to get to know each other better. And the dream has relevance later on.


	7. Chapter Six

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Six

Danny was confused when he left the lab that day. He was pretty sure Lindsay wasn't mad at him anymore, since she didn't seem to mind him coming to dinner with her sister and Flack. On the other hand, she had barely said two words to him the rest of the day. Mac had the entire team working on the Bozeman Strangler except Lindsay. She was helping the night team on their cases. She did their lab analysis and paperwork. They were each so busy that he hadn't been able to sneak in a moment alone with her.

He had been helping Stella and Hawkes process the evidence from Rebecca Saunders' crime scene. The travel records hadn't yielded anything relevant. So far, the evidence hadn't either. He was at his wits end. He wanted to find something conclusive and solve the case so Lindsay could be safe. Instead, he felt useless. The only thing he could do was wait until the next day when the rest of their results would be finished. He sighed in frustration and headed for the locker room.

He gathered his things from his locker and was about to leave when Stella entered the room.

"Hey, Danny."

"Hi, Stel," he mumbled. He really wasn't in the mood to chat. He really just wanted to find Lindsay so he could at least feel like he was being useful by not leaving her alone.

"I just saw Lindsay in the elevator. She said she'd meet you in the lobby."

Danny perked up. He wouldn't have to go looking for her then. "Thanks, Stella."

She smiled. "Thought that might cheer you up," she said, sounding like she knew something Danny didn't. "I hear you two are having dinner with Flack and Lindsay's sister."

"Yeah, at this little Italian place near Flack's. It's pretty decent food."

Stella smiled knowingly again. "Well, I won't keep you then. But we'll have to have a little chat later about these living arrangements you came up with."

Danny nodded, not at all looking forward to that conversation. As the locker room door shut behind him, he swore he could hear Stella chuckling to herself. _That woman scares me sometimes._

When he got to the lobby, Lindsay was standing by the elevators waiting for him, just like Stella had said.

"Hey, Montana."

"Hi, Danny," she said absently. "Let's get going. I'm starved."

Danny nodded, his good mood fading away. She didn't sound mad, exactly, but she didn't sound like she wanted him around. Playing off her mood, he didn't say anything. He simply followed her to the subway.

The car they got into was pretty empty, for the subway, but still Danny didn't say anything. Lindsay had her eyes closed, leaning the back of her head against the window behind her. She looked like she had a headache, and Danny wondered if she'd rather go straight home. _She probably does, but she sure as hell doesn't want to you to **your** home, Messer._

The silence was driving Danny crazy. He had to say something before he started thinking in the third person again.

"You still mad at me, Montana?"

She cracked an eye open and smiled a little.

"No, Danny. I'm not mad, but next time you want to make significant decisions for me, remember to ask first."

Danny nodded and smiled. His good mood was returning. Lindsay wasn't mad and he was going to dinner with her. _Okay, so Flack and her sister will be there, but this is almost like a date anyway._

When they got to the restaurant, they saw Flack and Sarah sitting at a little table for four near the back. The two were smiling and laughing like they'd known each other for years.

"Well, you look happy," Lindsay said as they approached the table.

Sarah smile and hugged her sister. "I had fun today. I didn't bring a lot of stuff, so Don took me out shopping."

_Don?_ Danny thought. _Nobody calls him Don._ He shot Flack a meaningful look, which was promptly ignored. However, Danny did catch a hint of redness around Flack's ears as he pretended not to notice Danny. _So that's how it is._

Sarah was telling Lindsay all about how Flack had taken her to all the stores she'd wanted to go to and how he'd sat patiently while she'd tried on all the clothes she'd liked.

"Then, we went to the men's section and I bought him a very nice tie, as a thank you."

"Wait, wait, wait," Danny interrupted. "You bought him a tie? And he let you?"

"Yes, is that so shocking?"

"Of course, it is," he said, very sincerely surprised. "He never lets anyone buy him ties. Aiden bought him one once as a joke, because it was the ugliest tie she could find. But other than that, no one's ever bought him a tie. He's very particular about his ties."

Flack kept giving Danny his Shut-up-idiot look, but Danny ignored him.

"I like giving ties," Sarah said. "I always bought my Dad's ties. I thought Don would like a tie. Didn't you like it?"

Flack's glare disappeared when she turned to him and a genuine smile appeared. "Yes, I did like it. Of course, I did. Messer's just being a brat."

Danny laughed, but since the waiter came over, he decided he'd let Flack off the hook on this one. _Finally, I can get him back for every time he's teased me about Montana._

-----

When they'd finished dessert, the girls went to the bathroom and Danny turned to Flack.

"You've got it bad, man."

Flack looked at his drink and the redness appeared around his ears again.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Messer."

Danny laughed.

"Flack, she bought you a tie. And you liked it. She's going to keep buying you ties and you don't seem to mind. You went shopping with her willingly, for Christ's sake. You've got it bad for Montana Jr."

Flack was about to deny it again, but then the girls returned.

"You ready to go, Don?" Sarah asked.

Flack nodded, while Danny mouthed 'Don' at him, along with another meaningful look. Danny saw that Lindsay noticed what was going on between him and Flack, so he whispered 'I'll tell you later' in her ear.

They paid for dinner and said their goodbyes, leaving Flack and Sarah to walk back to Flack's place, while Danny and Lindsay headed for the subway again.

"So, what was all that stuff with Flack about?" she asked.

He laughed. "He's got it bad for your sister."

"Really?" She looked puzzled, as if she was trying to see it and failing.

"Really. Look at the evidence. She calls him Don. No one else does. She buys him ties and he likes it. And the man volunteered to go shopping with her."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

He rolled his eyes and looked pointedly at her. "A man doesn't just go shopping with anyone, Montana. Clothes shopping means he cares."

She laughed, the tinkly laugh that he couldn't get enough of.

"I'll keep that in mind, Messer."

Danny grinned. "Do you need to go to your place to pick anything up?" he asked.

Lindsay shook her head and patted her bag. "I grabbed the extra stuff I keep at the lab. You can help me move stuff tomorrow."

"Alright, straight to my place it is."

Twenty minutes later, Danny was offering Lindsay a beer while she put her things in his spare room.

"I think I'll just take a shower and go to bed, Danny. It's been a stressful day."

He nodded and they said goodnight. Cracking open a beer of his own, he sat down on the couch. He turned on the TV in hopes of drowning out the sound of the shower. He tried to pay attention to the game show, but all he could think about was that Lindsay was naked in his bathroom.

_Oh God,_ he thought, as completely inappropriate images of joining her danced through his mind. _I'm never going to get through this._


	8. Chapter Seven

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Seven

Flack stared at the ceiling, making out cracks and patterns when the lights of cars flashed past his window. He strained his ears past the noise of traffic, nighttime in New York. He listened for a whimper or cry to come from the room next door. He was almost certain they would come, and he was determined to be awake to stop them.

It wasn't until very late, almost morning, when the whimpers began. They quickly grew louder, as Flack hurried down the hall to the other room.

Sarah lay tangled in the sheets, moaning in fear. Flack went to her side and lightly shook her.

"Sarah, wake up," he said softly.

After a moment of two, her eyes fluttered open and, just like on the sofa earlier, a glimmer of fear appeared before it faded into comprehension.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"No," she murmured.

"Was it the same dream?"

She nodded. He sighed and stroked her hair. She let out a sob and clung to his shirt. He gathered her up and held her close as she cried.

When her tears slowed, he lowered her back to her pillow and began to pull away. She tightened her grip on his shirt.

"Don't leave me," she whispered.

"I won't," he said. "I won't let anything hurt you."

He lay down beside her, on top of the sheets, and rubbed her back as she slowly fell asleep. He absently listened to her clam breathing and drifted into sleep himself.

-----

When he woke, the sun was lighting the room softly. Flack could hear his alarm going off in his bedroom, but he still had an hour and a half until he had to be at work. Slowly, he extracted himself from Sarah, who had managed to drape herself across his chest. He left her sleeping while he showered and changed for work.

He was making scrambled eggs and bacon when she came out of her room. He noticed how adorable she looked in her baggy shirt and boxers with her hair all mussed from sleeping. He smiled at her and gestured to the pans.

"Hope you like scrambled eggs and bacon," he said brightly.

"You cook?" she asked.

He laughed at her disbelieving look. "Only a couple of things. Scrambled eggs and bacon happen to be two of them."

She smiled at him. "I can make pretty good pancakes, myself."

"Well then, I guess between the two of us, we've got breakfast covered. Can you cook any dinner meals?"

She was brightening from his teasing and he could see the last vestiges of fear from the dream leave.

"I can cook a few things."

He grinned. "Then, we'll only need to order out when it's my turn to make dinner."

He set the eggs and bacon on the table and they sat to eat.

"So, what's happening today?" she asked. "Do I stay at the lab? Or will a cop just come with me everywhere?"

Flack shrugged his shoulders. He had no idea how they would work this, but he didn't really feel comfortable letting her out of his sight. She was beginning to mean quite a lot to him.

"I'm not sure," he said honestly. "We'll go down to the precinct and talk it over with my supervisor and Mac. But you'll probably want to talk to your mother at some point today, like Danny said yesterday."

She nodded, not looking too pleased with the idea of talking to her mother. It was understandable; neither he, Sarah, nor Danny had reacted very well when Lindsay described the phone call she had received. Though, Sarah had hugged Danny when she heard how he'd stood up for Lindsay.

When they finished breakfast, Sarah took a shower while Flack did the dishes and grabbed the things he needed for work. Soon enough, they were out of the apartment and on their way to the precinct.

When they got there, Flack held the door open for Sarah and guided her to his supervisor's office with a hand on her lower back. He saw Mac watching them through the window in the door, and from the look on the CSI's face, he knew that Mac hadn't missed the looks he gave Sarah or the position of his hand.

Flack's supervisor opened the door and told Sarah she could wait in the chair by the door while they talked to Flack. She didn't seem too happy to be left out, but she sat nonetheless. Flack shot her a sympathetic look before his entered the office.

"Well, Detective Flack," said Harrison, his supervisor. "Detective Taylor tells me that Miss Monroe out there requires constant police protection and that she is currently staying at your apartment."

"That's right, sir," Flack said.

"Well, this leaves the question of who will accompany her during the day."

Flack nodded.

Mac looked at him pointedly and said, "Flack, will you be able to work on this case objectively?"

Flack thought about saying yes for a moment, but then reconsidered. Mac already knew the answer, after all.

"No, Mac. I can't be objective."

Mac nodded. "And you probably won't be able to concentrate on other cases either."

Flack shook his head.

Harrison smiled. "Glad to see you're being honest, Detective. You'll be Miss Monroe's police escort then. That way we won't be wasting man power."

"Sir?" Flack asked, not quite believing what he was hearing.

Harrison started looking through the files on his desk and waved his hand dismissingly at Flack. "Take her sight-seeing or something, Detective. Show her the city. Just get outta my office."

Mac smiled at Flack as they walked out of Harrison's office.

"Didn't think you'd be up to interrogating suspects," he said.

Flack laughed. "That's why they pay you the big money, Mac. You're observant."

"What did he say?" Sarah asked, jumping out her chair.

Flack grinned at her. "Meet your mew personal bodyguard."

"Really?" she said happily.

"Really. He said we should go sight-seeing or something."

Sarah looked like she was going to burst with excitement.

"Great! I've always wanted to see New York." She grabbed his hand and started to pull him towards the doors. "Come on. We've got a lot of places to go. I want to see the Met and the zoo and Wall Street and Times Square. Oh, and don't forget Fifth Avenue."

"More shopping?" Flack groaned.

"Of course, and I want to see a Broadway musical."

He smiled at her enthusiasm. "Okay, but we can't do everything today."

As they left the building, Flack remembered they'd just left Mac standing there without even a goodbye. For a moment, he felt bad, but then he figured Mac would understand.

_After all, he's been in love too._

Flack was so shocked by this thought that he was paying for tickets into the Metropolitan Museum before he realized where he was.


	9. Chapter Eight

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer. Though you guys might like a little more of this fic, after two chapters of my new one, **Double Trouble**_. _I'm going to take a moment to advertise myself and request you check that story out too._

_I'd like to take this opportunity to thank each and every person who has reviewed this story. It makes me so happy to see the numbers go up and even happier to read the wonderful things you guys have said. It's very nice to see reoccurring names of reviewers too. Thanks to all of you who have made it such a pleasure to write. I always enjoy suggestions too. If you make one, who knows, I might just take it and dedicate a chapter to you._

Chapter Eight

Lindsay and Danny had a very different morning than Sarah and Flack. Lindsay woke up early and decided to let Danny sleep while she had a shower. Unfortunately, she let time get away from her and spent too long thinking. When she got out of the shower, she found they had just enough time to eat, dress and get to work.

Then, she couldn't wake Danny. After several minutes of yelling and shoving, Lindsay was forced to yank the covers off him. If she'd had time, she would have enjoyed looking at Danny in just his boxers. As it was, she didn't even have time to be embarrassed, let alone check him out.

Danny showered and dressed while Lindsay made two bagels with cream cheese. They rushed out of the building to the subway, eating their breakfast on the way.

When they got to the lab, Mac told Danny his results had come back with nothing. He sent Danny out with Stella and Detective Angell to talk to Rebecca Saunders' neighbours and friends. Mac put Lindsay on some cases from the night shift. She worked on those all morning.

She didn't see Danny for the rest day. He was out in the field and she spent the afternoon working on cold cases. She heard from Mac that her sister was under Flack's protection and they were sight-seeing. That made her feel better, because she knew that even if Danny was wrong about Flack liking Sarah, he'd still never let anything hurt her sister.

Nothing interesting happened at the lab for the rest of the day and Lindsay was anxious to get to Danny's. She wanted to know what they'd found and whether or not they were any closer to catching this guy. Right before she was getting ready to leave, she got a message from Sarah. She said she'd phoned their mother, but had left a message. She had left Flack's home phone number so Lindsay wouldn't have to worry about getting any more calls from Montana. Sarah's giddy comments about all the things she and Flack were doing made Lindsay smile. She knew her sister well enough to tell that she was starting to fall for Flack, if she hadn't already done so.

She left a message for Sarah on Flack's home answering machine and then went to the locker room to get her things. Danny was there when she entered and she felt better to see him. He, on the other hand, looked frustrated and upset. She could only assume that he had learned nothing new from all his work.

"Danny?"

He looked up from his locker and gave her a half-hearted smile.

"Hey, Montana."

His voice sounded sad and defeated. She didn't like the sound of it at all.

"We'll catch him, Danny."

He cleared his throat and gave her a real smile. It was as though he remembered he should be making her feel better, not the other way around.

"'Course we will. Don't you worry, Montana."

She tried to suppress a smile. _I'm not the one worrying._

"Ready to go pick up your stuff?" he asked.

"Just let me grab my bag."

-----

They were at Lindsay's building after only four subway stops. When they reached Lindsay's apartment, she saw the corner of an envelope sticking out from under her door.

"Danny, look," she said, pointing to it.

He frowned and reached for his gun. "You open the door and I'll cover you."

She nodded and unlocked the door. She felt safer knowing Danny would shoot anything that was a danger to her, even though she thought it unlikely that anyone would be in her apartment. After all, the envelope could have been from anybody.

She opened the door and Danny entered, sweeping his eyes around the room. When he cleared the room, she entered and he proceeded to check every other room. Only when he'd checked the entire apartment did he put his gun away.

Lindsay stood by the door until Danny came back and nodded.

"It doesn't look like anyone was in here."

She agreed and bent to pick up the letter.

"Wait," he said. "Use gloves."

He pulled out a pair of latex gloves from his pocket and handed them to her. She put them on and picked up the envelope. There was nothing on the envelope except the letters _L.M._ written in simple block letters. She and Danny shared a concerned look.

She opened the envelope and pulled out the lone piece of paper. She gasped as she read the message formed form magazine cut-out letters. She dropped the paper in shock. It fluttered to the floor and landed face up. Danny bent and read the seven letter message.

**Thought you were safe, did you, Detective?**

-----

Lindsay couldn't move. She _had_ thought she was safe. Dangerous as New York is, she had thought she was safe from _him_ there.

Danny was saying something, but she couldn't hear him over the rushing in her ears. When she could get a hold of herself, all she could say was one thing.

"He knows where I live."

Danny grabbed her shoulders. "Montana, we're going to deal with this. Work with me here, Lindsay."

His use of her real name snapped her out of it. She nodded at him and some tension left his face.

"Listen, give me those gloves and I'll bag the letter, alright?"

She nodded again, took off the gloves, and handed them to Danny.

"Okay," he said. "Now you pack your stuff. Just grab whatever you need. If you forget something, don't worry. We'll send someone back here or I'll buy you a new one. Then, we'll go back to the lab to drop the letter off. After, we'll go to my place. You'll be safe there."

She nodded once more, feeling as if that was all she could do. But Danny's reassuring gaze gave her the strength to do what he said. She filled two suitcases with her clothes, cosmetics, bathroom necessities and shoes. She filled a backpack with her laptop, computer accessories, CDs, movies and books.

Danny had put the letter and the envelope in a Ziploc baggie, which he taped shut as an improvised evidence bag. He helped her carry her things to the street where they hailed a taxi to the crime lab.

Lindsay remained in a daze as Danny spoke to Mac, who was unsurprisingly still at the lab. She barely registered them getting into another cab and driving to Danny's place.

It wasn't until she was standing in Danny's living room, surrounded by her bags, that she came out of her daze. Her emotions rushed over her and to her shame she burst into tears. Danny, who had just finished locking the door, quickly dropped the suitcase he was carrying and rushed over to her. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

"Don't cry," he said softly. "Please don't cry, Montana. We'll catch him. You'll be fine. I won't let him hurt you. I promise. Please, don't cry. It'll be okay. Please, Lindsay. Don't cry."

Danny's reassuring babble washed over her and helped stop her tears, just as much as feeling him arms around her. She felt warm and safe and protected. Danny would protect her and she loved Danny, even if she could tell him. She was allowed to feel safe if he held her.

"I'm sorry, Danny. I don't know what came over me," she whispered.

"Hey," he said, tipping her chin so she was looking at him. "Don't apologize. You've got nothing to be sorry for. I told you I'd be there for you, didn't I?"

She nodded and leaned her head against his chest, reveling in the feeling of being held by him. They stood like that in silence for minutes that seemed like hours.

Eventually, Danny pulled away. "You're probably tired. You should get some rest."

She was about to protest when she yawned widely. He smiled at her embarrassed look.

"Go on," he said. "I'll bring you a sandwich to eat in bed, okay?"

"Okay," she said and grabbed the suitcase with her pajamas. She smiled to herself, as she dug through it.

_Who knew Danny Messer could be so incredibly sweet?_


	10. Chapter Nine

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Nine

When Sarah and Flack got back to his apartment in the evening, they were tired but happy. Sarah had been thrilled with the Met and they'd taken a walk through Central Park. Flack even bought her tickets to a Broadway musical she was dying to see. They were going to see it the next night and she was so excited she could barely contain it. She bustled around the apartment singing show tunes, while Flack checked for messages.

"Your mother called," Flack yelled from the living room to her in the bathroom.

"I'll call her later," she called back.

"Lindsay phoned for you too," he said, as she came back into the living room. "And Stella. She has tomorrow afternoon off and she wanted to know if you'd like to go shopping. She said I can't be trusted to know the best shops."

Sarah laughed. "I'd love to go shopping with Stella. I'll call her after we eat."

Flack nodded. "Great. More shopping."

She laughed at his sarcasm. "You'll live. You might just learn something."

He shrugged. "Not if I can help it."

The unpacked the Chinese they'd picked up on the way home and bustled about the kitchen getting everything for dinner.

"You know," he said, opening a carton of sweet and sour pork, "you get more messages than me on this phone. Maybe I should just put you in the greeting. That way people will know you're getting them."

"You mean, like, 'Hi, you've reached Don and Sarah. Leave a message'?"

"Yeah," he said, trying to sound casual and only just failing.

She paused in her movements. Adding her name to the machine had hints of permanence. She'd had a friend in college whose boyfriend had never added her to his machine even after six months of living together because he'd said it sounded too much like being married. And yet, here was Flack asking after two days.

_Would it really be so bad to have a commitment with Don?_ she asked herself. _Even if it is just an answering machine._

She looked up at him. He was trying to get some plum sauce out of his tie. It was the tiniest drop, but he was totally concentrated on it. The man was unusually picky about his ties. She found it too adorable for words.

"Sure," she said.

He looked up from his tie. "What?"

"You can put my name on the machine."

He smile and immediately forgot about his tie. "Great! But let's eat first. I'm starved."

She grinned. He'd been starved all day. Even right after he ate a triple-decker hamburger for lunch. She helped herself to a healthy portion of General Tso's chicken and found soon found herself in a chopstick fencing match.

"Leave some for me," he protested.

They teased each other throughout the meal and when they finished Sarah called Stella while Flack cleaned up their garbage and dishes.

Once she'd settle plans with Stella, she went to pick out a movie from Flack's collection.

"Don, do you feel like sitting through a three hour action movie? There's sword fights! I promise."

"Sure," he said. "Just let me record a new greeting before we start."

"Okay, sword fights and men in tights it is," she mumbled to herself gleefully. He might like the movie for the action, but she liked the tunics and tights the actors wore.

When he was finished, they sat on the couch and settled in to watch the movie. They started sitting beside each other, with plenty of room in between, but before the movie was half over, she was cuddled into his side and his arm was wrapped around her shoulders. For the second time in two days, she fell asleep on his couch.

-----

When she woke up, she had a pain in her lower back and she could hear Flack talking quietly on the phone.

"Alright, Danny. I'll tell her. See you later."

She looked up over the back of the couch. "What time is it, Don?"

"It's only 9:50."

She sat up and looked at the television. "Did the movie finish?"

He shook his head. "No, I turned it off when you fell asleep."

"Oh."

She was still tired and she felt like her brain was running slower than usual. "What did Danny say?"

Flack came and sat next to her on the couch. "Lindsay and Danny found a letter from the killer when they went to her apartment tonight. Everybody's okay, but Danny thought you should know Lindsay's a bit shaken up."

She was sure she paled because Flack put his hand on her arm and asked if she was alright.

"Yes, it's just that… he found her. That probably means he could find her again."

He titled her face to look at his. "Danny will take care of her. He'd die before he let that man hurt her. Trust me."

"I do trust you," she whispered.

For a moment, she could have sworn he was going to kiss her, but then he pulled his hand away and sat back. She pushed down a pang of disappointment.

"Thanks, Don," she said softly, trying not to let her disappointment be heard.

"For what?" He didn't seem to want to break the moment by speaking louder than a whisper.

"For making me feel better, safer. For letting me stay here. For protecting me."

"But I haven't done anything," he protested.

She smiled gently. "Yes, you have." _You've been yourself._

She stood and for some reason she couldn't name, she ran a hand through his hair.

"Goodnight, Don."

He looked up and mumbled a goodnight. She smiled again and went to her room.

-----

When Sarah woke up again, she was pleased to see it was morning. The dream had not haunted her. Instead, her sleep had been filled with Flack. Specifically, the look on his face just before he'd pulled away from her. In the dream, she'd reached for him, but no matter how fast she moved, she couldn't reach him.

While this dream disturbed and unsettled her, she was thankful that it wasn't the killer dream. The killer left her terrified and paranoid. The biggest problem with this new dream was how she would react when she saw Flack.

That problem was soon faced, since she saw him as soon as she stepped out of her room. They both looked at each other for a moment, as if trying to determine how the other would act.

_I'll just see what he does and play off him._

After a moment or two, Flack smiled his usual smile, though it looked a little forced, and said a cheerful good morning.

_Okay, he's going for 'It never happened'. I can work with that. It's probably for the best anyway._

"Good morning, Don," she said, trying her best to sound happy and not disappointed once again. "What are we up to this morning?"

He shrugged. "We're going shopping with Stella and to a Broadway musical later, so maybe you want to go see some touristy spots, like Times Square and Wall Street?"

"Sure, how about the Empire State building?"

He shook his head. "Nah, you gotta do that at night. It looks a lot better. We could take the subway to Times Square and then down to the Financial District. We can walk around there for a while, until we meet Stella."

She nodded. _I guess that means we could go to Ground Zero at some point. It's in that direction._

Today, Flack had made sunny-side up eggs so they sat down to eat.

"You know, you don't have to make breakfast every morning," she said.

"I know," he replied. "But I actually like cooking in the morning. Helps me wake up. And as you know, breakfast is one of the only things I can cook."

She smiled at him. "You're really something else, Don."

He grinned back. "You just figuring that out now?"

She laughed and dug into her breakfast.

-----

The morning went very well right up until the end. They'd seen Times Square and Wall Street. She saw this adorable little church right by the Trump Building, which seemed like it had grown there among the skyscrapers. They had just enough time to see one more thing before meeting Stella so she suggested Ground Zero. She'd never seen it and she felt she should. She wanted to see the place that had been such a memorable and horrifying event. As soon as she mentioned the name, Flack froze. He eyes darkened and he scowled.

"No," he said, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk and drawing a few stares.

"What?"

"We're not going there," he insisted. "I'm not going there."

"But, Don,"

"I haven't been there yet and I'm not about to start now."

"But why?" she asked.

"I don't want to talk about it." He didn't sound like himself. He sounded choked up, strangled and angry all at the same time. Sarah didn't like that at all so she changed her mind. She could go to Ground Zero some other time.

"Okay. Why don't we just go for a long lunch then?"

He nodded and his face cleared a little. By the time they were eating, he was almost back to normal.

_Odd,_ she thought to herself. _There must be more to this than meets the eye. Don Flack, what is it that bothers you so much?_

-----

_AN: This chapter took forever to write. Sarah and Don are two of the most difficult characters to write together. They keep doing things I don't want them to do. Don was moving way too fast for me back there. I had just written her thought about him being about to kiss her when I realized what he was doing. I had to back track and help him save face, so she didn't think he went around kissing all the new girls he meets. And Sarah! That hand running through his hair came out of nowhere. She couldn't explain it and neither can I. They seem to want to get together much too early for the story. Damn Flack's sexiness. Sarah obviously can't resist!_

_The movie they watched was Lord of the Rings. Give me Viggo and Orlando in tights any day._

_The church near the Trump Building is Trinity Church. It really does look like it grew there. At least, I thought it did when I was in New York._

_Bet you're all wondering what's up with Flack and Ground Zero. I'm fiddling with several different schemes, but I think I've almost pretty much decided which one I'm going to use. Is anyone noticing a pattern with how Flack deals with personal conflict? I'm doing that one on purpose._

_A lot of things happening here. I hope you guys aren't too confused about the time lines. If it's a problem, comment and I'll work on it. That was Sarah's second night and third day (if you count the half day when she arrived as her first day)._


	11. Chapter Ten

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer._

Chapter Ten

Danny woke up early the morning after they'd found the letter. He rolled over and sighed. Lindsay just couldn't catch a break. He wished he could save her from some of her burdens, but she wouldn't let him in.

She'd been more open than usual last night. He'd been so happy when she let him hold her. Of course, she'd been sobbing and traumatized, which is why he'd backed off when he did. He didn't want to screw this up by taking advantage.

He rolled out of bed and went to make coffee. Lindsay would probably want some coffee and breakfast. She had fallen asleep halfway through her sandwich and she'd most likely be starving when she woke. He popped some bread in the toaster and rummaged through his fridge for something to put on it.

As he turned around, he heard Lindsay walking in the hallway. When she reached the kitchen, she stood in the doorway looking hesitant. He didn't want to push her, so he just smiled and said good morning.

"Morning, Danny," she replied. "Is there toast for me?"

The toast popped out and Danny put it on a plate. "I made yours first," he said, handing her the plate.

He poured her a cup of coffee as she sat down at the table he brought her the jam and her coffee before his started making his own breakfast.

"You don't have to be so nice," she said. "I'm alright."

"I know I don't _have_ to," he replied. "I _want_ to. So forget about it."

"Well, thanks, Danny. For yesterday too."

He shrugged. "I told you. I'm here when you need me."

"I appreciate it."

They ate in silence until Danny couldn't stand it anymore. He knew that he shouldn't pry and that it had never helped before, but he had to know.

"Montana, can I ask you a personal question?"

She looked reluctant, but nodded anyway.

"Is this killer the issue you had to deal with by yourself? I mean, is it why you stood me up?"

She looked down at her hands and Danny cursed himself. They were starting to get closer and he thought he'd ruined it all with that question.

"Yes, Lindsay said quietly. "It is."

He could tell she had more to say so he sat there and waited.

"I thought I wasn't afraid anymore, but when I was getting ready to meet you, I started worrying about it. I didn't want to put you in a dangerous situation if he came back. I was scared, but I was right. He has come back."

"Montana," he said gently, "it doesn't matter to me if I'm in danger. You know me, danger doesn't faze me. I'd rather be with you and in danger than not be with you at all."

"But, Danny, I don't want to force you into this situation."

"Who's forcing? I'm already on the case and this whole living situation was my idea. I've already made my choice. I just want to be with you, Lindsay. Promise you'll think about it. Please."

She looked shocked and Danny knew he was coming off desperate, but he didn't care. Not being with her was killing him. He needed her and he wanted her to need him. If she'd think about it, he thought she might come around.

After a minute, she nodded. "I'll think about it."

He smiled the smile he reserved for her. "Thanks."

He stood up and cleared their dishes. "We'd better get ready for work."

She nodded and they went about their morning routines. He did everything the same as he usually did but something felt different. Instead of the hopelessness and confusion he usually felt when he thought about his relationship with Lindsay, he now felt like they were going somewhere. That little get of hope made even his morning shave feel that much brighter.

-----

That morning promise was the only bright spot in Danny's day. The letter had surprisingly yielded no leads. After spending all day running tests, he'd discovered the envelope and paper were generic brands that could be purchased anywhere. The killer had sealed the envelope with the same glue used to paste on the letters, which was the most popular brand available everywhere. The letters themselves were from a seemingly random collection of magazines ranging from Auto Trader to Cosmo to Time Magazine. The killer was really covering his tracks and it was pissing Danny off. There weren't even any prints.

"Damn it," he grumbled as his last lead dried up.

"Got anything, Danny?"

Stella walked into the lab and he nodded.

"Nothing. This guy's smart, Stel."

She put a reassuring hand on Danny's shoulder. "We'll get him. Don't you forget that."

He looked up at her and nodded. "I know, but will that be before or after he gets Montana and her sister?"

Stella sucked in a breath and Danny regretted saying that. It was morbid and not useful at all. He just didn't want Montana to end up like Aiden.

"Before, of course," Stella said. "Speaking of Lindsay's, how's the living arrangement working out?"

He sighed. He thought he'd escaped the conversation, because Stella hadn't talked to him yesterday. Clearly, she'd just been giving him a false sense of security.

"It's okay," he said simply.

She raised her eyebrows. "Only okay? Danny Messer is living with a pretty girl and he's not enjoying every minute of it?"

He shrugged. "It's not like she's in a position to do anything you're assuming. Besides, a serial killer wasn't really something I'd imagined as the reason Montana would live with me."

"So, you've imagined living with Lindsay?"

Danny mentally cursed himself. He hadn't meant to say that. Not that it wasn't true; he just didn't want anyone to know. Stella wouldn't tell anyone if he asked her not to, though, and he really did want to talk to someone. Stella was almost like a big sister and she'd be able to give a woman's perspective, so she was probably a good choice.

"Okay, so I have imagined living with Montana. Really often. But you can't tell anyone, Stella. Seriously."

She nodded. "Of course, I won't. Are you really serious about her?"

"Yeah, I am. But she won't let me get close."

She was about to say something when her pager went off. She looked at it quickly and said, "It's Mac. Sorry to but short, but you know how it is. Just give her time, Danny. After all, she'd have to be crazy to let you get away."

With a wink, she left the lab and Danny felt a little better. If Stella thought Lindsay would come around, she probably would. Stella was usually right about this kind of stuff.


	12. Chapter Eleven

_See prologue for story information and disclaimer. _

_Sorry for the delay. Here's the next chapter and thanks for waiting. Also, I apologize if the flashback is inaccurate. I have no idea how 9/11 went down for cops._

Chapter Eleven

Flack didn't feel like himself all afternoon. After Sarah had suggested going to Ground Zero, he had frozen up and fallen on his usual coping technique. Pretending certain things hadn't happened was working for him, but he couldn't pretend if she made him go _there_. He had been surprised she had given in so easily, but he assumed she hadn't finished with the issue. If he knew one thing about women, it's that they always wanted men to talk through their problems. He'd have to come up with some sort of strategy for that conversation.

After their lunch, they met Stella for shopping and he was demoted to bag boy. According to Stella and Sarah, he couldn't be trusted to match clothes, so his opinion was only useful if they needed to know how an outfit would affect a man.

This would usually be a good thing for Flack, who didn't generally enjoy shopping. He could have let his mind wander to the latest sports news or a case. However, this time his thoughts drifted in an entirely unwelcome direction. Sarah's suggestion brought painful memories to the forefront of his mind; memories he thought he'd buried long ago.

-----

_Ten year old Junior was playing in his front yard, shooting a tennis ball into a makeshift hockey net, when a moving van pulled up next door. He stopped and watched as big men started unloading furniture and carrying it into the house. A woman with red hair rushed out of the car that had pulled up and started yelling at them to be careful._

_Junior realized this was the new family that his mother had mentioned at breakfast that morning. He watched as a man with brown hair and a boy with red hair around his age got out of the car. After a couple of minutes, the boy noticed him and came over._

"_Hi," he said. "My name's Jerry. Do you live here?"_

_Junior jerked a thumb towards his house. "Yeah, I live right here. I'm Don Flack, but everybody calls me Junior."_

_Jerry nodded. Junior grinned as he saw some hockey sticks being unloaded from the truck._

"_D'you like hockey?" he asked._

"_Yeah, it's great," Jerry said._

"_Wanna play?"_

_Jerry nodded and a friendship was born._

-----

_From the day they met, Jerry and Junior had been inseparable. They remained the best of friends through middle school and high school. After high school, Junior had gone to the police academy and Jerry had started training to be a firefighter. Even though they didn't live next door any more and they didn't see each other every day, they were still as close as ever. They were brothers in every way but blood and Junior was sure that would never change._

-----

_It had started like any September morning. Flack was on his beat with Moran. It was a couple of years since he'd been Junior on a daily basis. He was now Flack, the beat cop, except when Moran called him 'kid'. The only times he was Junior were when he was at home or with Jerry._

_He and Moran had been eyeing some local gang members who were looking suspicious when they heard a scream from the diner across the street from their squad car. With the instincts of New York's finest, they jumped out of their car and ran across the street._

_Whatever they had expected to find, it wasn't a crowd of shocked patrons staring at the television above the bar. Flack looked up at it and he understood. On the screen was something that couldn't be true, except in movies. The World Trade Center was smoking. A plane hit it again and again as the news channel repeated the footage._

_Moran was snapped out of his shock by a voice on his radio saying 'Attention all units'. The diner patrons turned to look at them and Moran nudged Flack's arm._

"_Come on, kid. We've got to get down there."_

-----

_Flack didn't actually get to the site. He got stuck on crowd control a couple of blocks away, since he was such a young cop. When he got home much later there was a message on his machine from his mother._

_Years later, the only part of the message he'd remember was his mother's voice full of tears saying Jerry was dead._

-----

"Don, what do you think?"

Flack was jolted to the present by Sarah's voice. He looked up to see her standing in a tight, red dress that hugged her in all the right ways. He answered her question with the only thing he could think of.

"Gah."

She smirked and turned to Stella. "I think this is the one."

She walked back into the changing room and Flack's mental faculties returned to him. He tried to regain his emotional control. It had been a long time since he'd thought about that September day when his almost brother had been crushed by a collapsing building. He wasn't the same Junior he had been back then. He wasn't even the same Flack.

Stella looked at him questioningly.

"You okay, Flack?"

He blinked and forced he usual grin. "Yeah, just bored, that's all."

She smiled. "We're almost done. I promise. I've got to go back to work in an hour or so."

-----

The time went more quickly for Flack when he merely concentrated on how good Sarah looked in the outfits she tried on. In the end, she bought the red dress to wear to the musical that evening and a couple other nice outfits.

When they left Stella, who was mumbling about needing to talk to Danny, they headed back to the apartment to get ready for dinner and their musical.

When they got there, Sarah turned to Flack and said, "Don, about this morning,"

He held up his hand and she paused.

"Can we talk about this after the show?" he asked. "I don't want to ruin the night."

She didn't look satisfied with that idea, but she nodded any way.

"Alright, Don. If you're sure."

"I'm sure," he said. "Besides, we don't have a lot of time before our dinner reservations and it's a long story."

She smiled and they went to get ready.

-----

They were on their way out the door when they noticed a message on the machine. Flack pressed the button and they heard Mrs. Monroe's angry voice.

"He put you on his machine?" she yelled. "Sarah Alexandra Monroe, you listen to me. You'd better get yourself off this machine and back home where you belong. I don't want to have to say it again."

The click of her hanging up was followed by a few moments of silence. Flack wasn't sure how Sarah would react. For a second, he thought she was about to pack up her stuff, but then she started laughing.

"Oh Mom," she said. "That's not going to make me want to go back."

She turned to Flack and smiled. "Come on, Don. Let's go. We don't want to be late. I'll call her later and tell her I'm not leaving."

Flack let out a breath that he didn't know he had been holding. He smiled and held out his arm for her. She took it happily and he felt unreasonably pleased.

-----

When they got back from the musical, Sarah couldn't stop singing the songs. Flack would normally have been annoyed, but he found it endearing with Sarah.

"So, Don, did you want to talk now?"

He sighed, and wished she had kept singing. Despite his misgivings, he nodded and they sat down on the couch.

"Why were you so upset?" she asked.

He took a deep breath, taking a moment to be wonder why he felt like he had to be completely honest with her. He looked at her, seeing concern and something else shining in her eyes, and he remembered. _Oh right, that's why._

"When I was younger, I had this friend, who was almost like a brother…"


End file.
